Complexes of paramagnetic ions such as gadolinium-DTPA (Gd-DTPA) have been developed as magnetic resonance (MR) contrast agents. While gadolinium is quite toxic alone, the ion complex, Gd-DTPA, has much less toxicity, and has been used in MR imaging. Gd-DTPA, however, has limited use as an imaging agent. Indeed, while Gd-DTPA functions effectively as a contrast agent in the imaging of extracellular spaces, it provides little contrast enhancing effect as a blood pool imaging agent. Investigators have looked to other paramagnetic ions, such as manganese, for the development of similar complexes, such as Mn-DTPA. Such complexes, however, have been largely unstable in the serum, and thus suffer limitations similar to Gd-DTPA. Recently manganese pyridoxal phosphate compounds have been developed as an MR contrast agent. These compounds appear to function effectively as liver imaging agents, but are not thought to have much use as blood pool agents, or for other uses, such as agents for imaging the bone marrow, spleen or lymph nodes.
Liposomes have also been studied as MR contrast agents. Liposomal paramagnetic contrast agents have been shown to be effective in imaging the blood pool, liver, spleen and bone marrow. It has also been shown that small liposomes under 50 nm in size were more effective as MR contrast agents than larger liposomes, when the liposomes were used to entrap paramagnetic complexes such as Gd-DTPA. Even in the case of using small liposomes, however, the entrapped Gd-DTPA has less relaxivity than Gd-DTPA which is free in solution and not entrapped within liposomes. Gd-DTPA entrapped within a lipid membrane has a reduction in relaxivity because of the reduction in water flux that occurs across the intervening lipid bilayer. To improve the relaxivity workers have developed membrane bound paramagnetic ions but these have largely been unstable and usually do not show improved relaxivity.
The need is great for new and/or better contrast agents for magnetic resonance imaging. The present invention, which provides a new class of liposoluble compounds having characteristics such as improved relaxivity and/or high stability, is directed to these important ends.